1. Just like last year, this Oscars was marked with a series of memorable moments, definitely including NPH’s extravagant opening number (much compared to Hugh Jackman’s humble one in 2009… I guess it has to be either monologue or song that makes up the Oscars opening), his hilarious parody of Birdman and Whiplash, the redemptive reunion between Idina Menzel and John Travolta, Lady Gaga’s glittering tribute to the Sound of Music, and many more. Also I keep wondering how NPH could have placed his accurate predictions.

2. Most of my own predictions went wrong, except my new favourite Alexandre Desplat who won the Best Original Score award for the Grand Budapest Hotel. I hoped Michael Keaton would win Best Actor in exchange for all the essential ones like Best Picture and Best Director, which I thought were very much reserved for Boyhood. But it turned out the other way around: Boyhood only won Best Supporting Actress out of 11 categories it was nominated while Birdman swept Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Cinematography. Personally I didn’t care about either one but I’d rather Boyhood for its more universal themes that extend beyond the interests of lofty film artists.

3. Also this Oscars was highlighted by a number of inspiring speeches, including Patricia Arquette’s call for equal wage for women, the Best Adapted Screenplay winner Graham Moore’s encouragement for all those “weird and different,” J.K. Simmons’ urge to “call our parents, if we are lucky enough to have one or two alive on this planet,” and Iñárritu’s few words for immigrants. But some of their words also attracted criticisms. I personally cannot understand why Arquette had to bring up (the rights of) sexual minorities and people of color to support her own vision of the fight for women’s equality, because their rights should be respected as equal as hers. I do think it was intrusive and …selfish.

4. Like last year, I was distressed to see ‘race’ become a heated issue all over again. As the host NPH jokingly remarked, this Oscars has been ferociously criticized for being the “whitest” Oscars in a few years, for the nominees in the important categories were all “white” people, famously snubbing the director and actors of Selma, a drama based on Martin Luther King Jr. and a Best Picture nominee. I haven’t seen Selma so I couldn’t comment on whether it deserved a best director or best actor nomination; but I hate to see the purity of art ruined by all these issues of discrimination and unfairness.